IN the city of Cambridge north of Boston in 1982, life is not going well for the Stewart family – Cameron (Mark Ruffalo) and Maggie (Zoe Saldana), daughters Amelia (Imogene Wolodarsky) approaching puberty and Faith (Ashley Aufderheide) somewhat younger.

Suffering with bipolar disorder, Cameron is unemployable. The money has run out. Maggie, unable to get a job, enrols in an MBA course at a university in New York. Because Cameron and the girls don’t want to relocate, she undertakes to come home every weekend.

In a warm, gentle, affectionate and optimistic debut film about this family coping with adversity, writer/director Maya Forbes, Imogene’s real-life mother, delivers a strong verity. Amelia is indeed Maya as a child.

The plot deals on its surface with life in a cramped apartment where the family has relocated, dependant on Maggie’s family for support. Behind that veil, its strongest issue is Cam’s coping as primary caregiver for two spirited, intelligent, vulnerable little girls – domestic chores; mood swings; major emotional and familial strains. Forbes’ screenplay blends gentle humour and optimism with pervasive love persevering among serious hazards and hassles. Concupiscence adds a special poignancy. Maggie feels this is no time for carnality, leaving Cam’s testosterone with nowhere to go.

Outstanding performances from Ruffalo and the two youngsters bringing delightful maturity to demanding roles make the film also one to savour for the authentic flavour of its human drama, people making hard choices and confronting and facing down the risks with which the story confronts them.

At Dendy and Palace from March 26.